NCIN Program Awards Grants to 52 Schools of Nursing

Program support to 52 schools of nursing will aid
second-career nurses from groups underrepresented in the profession.

PRINCETON, N.J. – The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) today announced awards to 52 schools of nursing that have been selected to participate in RWJF’s prestigious New Careers in Nursing Scholarship Program (NCIN). During the 2013-2014 academic year, the schools will receive grants to support traditionally underrepresented students who are making a career switch to nursing through an accelerated baccalaureate or master’s degree nursing program. NCIN is a program of RWJF and the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN).

“At this time when the nation’s need for highly educated nurses is growing, we are delighted to be able to support nursing students who will bring diverse and valuable perspectives to the field, and become capable, culturally-competent nurses,” said David Krol, MD, MPH, FAAP, RWJF senior program officer. “NCIN is not only helping these students succeed in school, it is helping prepare the nursing workforce to meet the challenges that lie ahead.”

Each NCIN Scholar has already earned a bachelor’s degree in another field, and is making a career switch to nursing through an accelerated nursing degree program, which prepares students to pass the licensure exam required for all registered nurses in as little as 12-18 months.

In addition to a $10,000 scholarship, NCIN scholars receive other support to help them meet the demands of an accelerated degree program. All NCIN grantee schools maintain a leadership program and a mentoring program for their scholars, as well as a pre-entry immersion program to help scholars learn study, test-taking, and other skills that will help them manage the challenges of an accelerated program.

“NCIN is strengthening nursing education and creating a culture of change at schools of nursing across the country,” said AACN President Jane Kirschling, PhD, RN, FAAN. “Our grantee schools are committed to enrolling students traditionally underrepresented in nursing, and students are benefiting from the emphasis on mentoring and leadership development that are hallmarks of the NCIN program. AACN is proud to collaborate with RWJF on this ground-breaking effort.”

Since 2008, the NCIN program has distributed 3,117 scholarships to students at more than 125 unique schools of nursing. This year, funding for 400 scholarships was granted to 52 schools of nursing.

In this sixth year of the program, the following schools were awarded grants:

Allen College
Bellarmine University
Boston College
College of St. Scholastica
Columbia University in the City of New York
Creighton University
Drexel University
Duke University
Duquesne University
Edgewood College
Florida Atlantic University
Georgia Health Sciences University
Indiana University
Lewis University
Linfield College
Marquette University
Medical University of South Carolina
MidAmerica Nazarene University
Mount St. Mary's College
Nebraska Methodist College
New York University
Norfolk State University
Oregon Health & Science University
Pace University
Quinnipiac University
Rush University Medical Center
Saint Louis University

Samford University
Samuel Merritt University
Seton Hall University
Southern Connecticut State University
Stony Brook University
The Research Foundation of the State University of New York (SUNY Downstate)
University of California, San Francisco
University of Central Florida
University of Delaware
University of Hawaii at Manoa
University of Louisville
University of Maryland, Baltimore
University of Massachusetts Amherst
University of Miami
University of Michigan Flint
University of Mississippi Medical Center
University of Missouri
University of Rochester
University of Tennessee (Knoxville)
University of Texas at El Paso
University of Wyoming
Valdosta State University
West Virginia University
Winston-Salem State University
Yale University

The 2010 Institute of Medicine (IOM) report, The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health, recommends increasing the proportion of nurses with a baccalaureate degree or higher, and increasing the diversity of students to create a nursing workforce prepared to meet the health care demands of diverse populations across the lifespan. NCIN is helping to advance those recommendations, enabling schools to expand student capacity in higher education, and encouraging more diversity.

By bringing more nurses into the profession at the baccalaureate and master’s degree levels, the NCIN program also helps to address the nation’s nurse faculty shortage. This trend is reflected in the NCIN scholars, as 91 percent of the students receiving funding in the first three years of the program indicate a desire to advance their education to the master’s and doctoral levels.

About NCINThe Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) joined with the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) to create New Careers in Nursing (NCIN): an RWJF Scholarship Program to help alleviate the nursing shortage and increase the diversity of nursing professionals. Through annual grants to schools of nursing, NCIN provides $10,000 scholarships to college graduates with degrees in other fields who wish to transition into nursing through an accelerated baccalaureate or master’s nursing program. For more information, visit www.newcareersinnursing.org.
About the Robert Wood Johnson FoundationThe Robert Wood Johnson Foundation focuses on the pressing health and health care issues facing our country. As the nation’s largest philanthropy devoted exclusively to health and health care, the Foundation works with a diverse group of organizations and individuals to identify solutions and achieve comprehensive, measurable, and timely change. For more than 40 years the Foundation has brought experience, commitment, and a rigorous, balanced approach to the problems that affect the health and health care of those it serves. When it comes to helping Americans lead healthier lives and get the care they need, the Foundation expects to make a difference in your lifetime. Follow the Foundation on Twitter at www.rwjf.org/twitter or Facebook at www.rwjf.org/facebook.
About AACNThe American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) is the national voice for baccalaureate and graduate programs in nursing. Representing more than 720 member schools of nursing at public and private institutions nationwide, AACN’s educational, research, governmental advocacy, data collection, publications and other programs work to establish quality standards for bachelor’s and graduate degree nursing education, assist deans and directors to implement those standards, influence the nursing profession to improve health care, and promote public support of baccalaureate and graduate nursing education, research and practice. For more information, visit www.aacn.nche.edu.